With a leasehold property you own the property and its land for a fixed period, depending on the agreement you have with the landlord. This effectively makes you a tenant and means you could be liable for things like ground rent or property maintenance bills.

Freehold means you own the property and the land it sits on.

Generally, leasehold is the ownership structure that’s in place when you buy a flat, apartment or maisonette in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. Most houses are sold on a freehold basis.

A bad press for leasehold ownership

You may have seen some negative headlines about leaseholds in the press last year, featuring a number of homeowners who face seemingly unfair terms and unexpected costs once they’ve moved in. In recent years developers have increasingly been building and then selling houses on a leasehold basis; exposing homeowners to additional costs they wouldn't normally need to worry about with a freehold house purchase.

What's more, these leasehold agreements can include terms which may have been overlooked by the buyer during the purchase, such as the doubling of ground rent every 10 years. In these cases, developers have often sold the freehold of these properties without the homeowner’s knowledge, and the new landlords have increased the charges.

If a landlord wants to sell the freehold of a block of flats, they are legally required to give the leaseholders the opportunity to buy it. However, this law doesn't apply to leasehold houses.

Will the law change?

With 1.4 million leasehold houses across England and the number of leasehold sales growing rapidly, the government is taking action to make the leasehold market fairer. In Dec 2017, Communities Secretary, Sajid Javid, announced new measures to cut out these unfair practices within the leasehold system, including a ban on leaseholds for almost all new build houses.

What to do if you’re concerned

If you’re purchasing a property or have purchased a new build property recently, and you’re not sure if it’s a freehold or leasehold ownership, speak to your solicitor. They will be able to find out and give you more guidance.

If you’re looking to buy your first home, or move up the property ladder, please contact us and we’ll advise you on a range of mortgage deals, including exclusive rates that might not be available on the high street.

Your home may be repossessed if you do not keep up repayments on your mortgage.

This comes after Police data shows that more than £43m of people’s retirement savings have been lost to fraud since the pension freedom reforms were announced. Figures from The Pensions Regulator estimate that around £500 million is stolen from our pensions every year.

There are different types of scam, but they often begin by someone contacting you unexpectedly by phone, email or letter. They may invite you to learn more about:

• an investment or other business opportunity that you’ve not previously spoken to them about
• taking your pension money before you’re 55
• ways that you can invest your pension fund

Protect yourself from fraud

Fraudsters and their scams are becoming increasingly sophisticated. They can be financially articulate and very convincing; with websites and marketing material that make them look legitimate. So how would you know if you’re about to be the next victim?

Spot the warning signs - If you’re contacted out of the blue, if the investment risks are downplayed, or they are using pressurised selling tactics which offer a bonus or discount, it should set off alarm bells. And if the offer is ‘one time only’ or you’re asked not to share the details of the ‘opportunity’, you should be suspicious.

Check the Financial Services Register – https://register.fca.org.uk or call 0800 111 6768. If an individual or company is not on the register, it’s probably a scam.

A good rule of thumb with all scams if it’s too good to be true, it probably is.

If you think you are being targeted by a scam hang up the call, delete the email, rip up the letter. If you think you have been the victim of a scam already contact Action Fraud, the UK's national fraud and cybercrime reporting centre, immediately on 03001232040.

To find out more about how to protect yourself from financial scams visit:

• FCA ScamSmart
  www.fca.org.uk/scamsmart
• Take Five
  https://takefive-stopfraud.org.uk/
• Pension Wise
  https://www.pensionwise.gov.uk/en
• The Pension Advisory Service
  https://www.pensionsadvisoryservice.org.uk/

As your trusted Financial Adviser, you should always talk to us before taking any critical financial decisions, especially when it comes to something as important as your pension.

Every commentator will have a different idea about which areas and which funds are the best bet; and these varying opinions can cause confusion for anyone relying on their expertise.

It’s also important to note that none of these talking heads will be privy to your specific financial circumstances and goals – no matter how impressive their CVs. That’s why it is so important to seek advice from professionals – like us – who will take the time to find out more about you, what makes you tick and what you’d like to do with your money. This ensures a robust process which results in an appropriate plan and appropriate investments that match your specific risk profile and financial goals.

Diversification matters

Any investment professional worth their salt will tell you about the importance of diversification across your investments, particularly if you plan to save money in your ISA over the longer term (ie. more than five years).

If you invest in individual funds, and we can recommend funds from some of the leading fund managers, the trick is to blend exposure to different asset classes. These asset classes include equities, often referred to as ‘stocks’ or ‘shares’, which represent a stake in the ownership of a company.

There are also bonds – sometimes referred to as ‘fixed income’ securities – which could be described in similar terms as a loan to a company or government which pays interest. Compared to equities, bonds can be less risky should you require a more stable investment environment.

Other, so-called ‘alternative’ investments could include property, or commodities like gold, natural gases or agriculture, which are all accessed via specialist funds.

Active, daily management

We can recommend a spread of funds through a range of risk-rated portfolios. These are the auto-rebalancing Openwork Graphene Model portfolios and the actively managed Omnis Managed Portfolio Service.

The latter is managed on a daily basis by experts whose aim is to deliver consistent returns while managing risk through investing in a wide variety of Omnis funds.

Whichever way you invest, it’s important that you take up your maximum ISA allowance if you can afford to. This is £20,000 for the 2017/18 tax year.

If you’d like advice on your investment planning, please get in touch.

The tax efficiency of ISAs is based on current rules. The current tax situation may not be maintained. The benefit of the tax treatment depends on the individual circumstances.

The value of your stocks and shares ISA and any income from it may fall as well as rise. You may not get back the amount you originally invested.

But did you stop to think that posting information like this on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter or Snapchat could be advertising your property, your whereabouts and your latest expensive Christmas gadget to criminals, and potentially void your home insurance?

Counting the cost of burglary
There were 650,000 domestic burglaries in the 12 months to March 2017, costing, on average, £2,267 in stolen valuables and £566 worth of damage.

Figures also show that the number of claims relating to domestic burglary increases by a whopping 36% from November to March. This could be down to the longer nights providing more opportunities for criminal activity, and the likelihood of burglars finding expensive purchases and presents following the Christmas period.

Take a break from social media
If you suffer a break-in shortly after publishing your latest holiday snaps on social media, it could lead to your home insurance provider deciding you are partly at fault for advertising an empty property and this could affect your claim.

Are you vulnerable?
When assessing an application for home insurance, insurers are reportedly considering asking homeowners if they use social media, as the risk of over-sharing becomes more and more common. If you use social media and think it could affect your home insurance, consider taking the following steps to reduce your risk:

1. Turn off location-based services on the social media accounts you use

2. Never share your home address on social media

3. Make your posts private so that only your friends and connections can see them

It also makes sense to review your home insurance cover, especially after Christmas or birthdays when you may have bought or received expensive items.

If you’re concerned you may not have the right type of cover, or you think you might be underinsured, please talk to us.

In a nutshell, the Junior ISA is a long-term, tax-free savings account for children. It effectively replaced the Child Trust Fund and aims to enable parents to save a tax-efficient nest egg for their children.

There are two types of Junior ISA and your child can have one or both types:

• A cash Junior ISA, where you won’t pay tax on interest on the cash you save.

• A stocks and shares Junior ISA, where your cash is invested and you won’t pay tax on any capital growth or dividends you receive.

Managing the money
Only parents, or guardians with parental responsibility, can open a Junior ISA for under 16s, but the money belongs to the child. Until the child turns 16, the parent can manage the account if they want to make changes. For example, they could change the account from a cash to a stocks and shares Junior ISA or change the account provider.

The child takes over control of the account when they turn 16 and they can access their money from age 18 (when the ISA automatically loses its 'Junior' status).

Children aged 16 or older can open their own Junior ISA, as well as an adult cash ISA (with maximum contribution limits of £4,128 and £20,000 respectively, for the 2017-18 tax year).

Paying into a Junior ISA
Anyone can pay into a Junior ISA, but the total amount paid in can’t exceed £4,128 in the 2017/18 tax year and £4,260 for 2018/19. If you go over this limit, the excess is held in a savings account in trust for the child and cannot be returned.

During the 2017/18 tax if you have paid £2,000 into a child’s Cash Junior ISA you can only pay £2,128 into their stocks and shares Junior ISA. You can make contributions into a Junior ISA until the child’s 18th birthday.

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

The tax efficiency of ISAs is based on current rules.
The current tax situation may not be maintained. The benefit of the tax treatment depends on the individual circumstances. The value of your stocks and shares ISA and any income from it may fall as well as rise. You may not get back the amount you originally invested.

If you'd like more information on Junior ISAs, please get in touch.

On 20 January, Donald Trump was inaugurated as the 45th President of the United States. Global stock markets had rallied since the election result on 8 November, with many in corporate America hoping to benefit from promised tax reforms. Not everyone was happy. The day after Trump's inauguration, approximately half a million people protested in the Women's March in Washington DC, making it one of the largest one-day protests in American history.

In Europe, the Dutch were hailed as having “defeated populism” in the 15 March election by denying the Geert Wilders-led Party of Freedom’s bid for power.

On 7 May Emmanuel Macron of En Marche! was declared President of France having won the second-round vote against the Marine Le Pen-led National Front by a decisive margin. Again, the election is billed as a win against populism and Europe’s far-right. World stock markets are at their highest point for the year so far.

Across the Channel, the UK general election on 8 June restored Theresa May as Prime Minister, but only after the Democratic Unionist Party of Northern Ireland agrees to support a Conservative minority government. As the results came in, the prospect of a hung parliament led to an immediate fall in the value of the pound. May’s intention was to seek an overall majority, paving the way for easier Brexit negotiations.

After a relatively quiet end to the summer, aside from ongoing Brexit discussions, the Eurozone’s biggest player Germany held its federal election on 24 September. The result saw the Christian Democratic Union win only 33% of the vote – its lowest share of the vote since 1949 – but enough to see Angela Merkel remain as Chancellor. Markets then rallied for the last week of September and continued to climb in October.

Into autumn and it was the turn of the Japanese to go to the polls on 22 October. Given the dramatic fall in popularity that many world leaders had found themselves in over the year, it was a relief for Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to secure a big election win. The father of ‘Abenomics’ and the ‘three arrows’ policy of monetary easing, fiscal stimulus and structural reform, Abe’s victory was welcomed by a rise in markets.

Elsewhere in Asia, perhaps the most significant global change was happening in China where the hugely powerful Communist party held its five-yearly congress. President Xi Jinping cemented his legacy with his own political philosophy being written into the country’s constitution.

Emerging markets will dominate the electoral calendar in 2018, with votes due in the likes of Russia, Mexico, Brazil and Pakistan.

If you're concerned about how global events could impact your investment portfolio, please get in touch.

Individual Savings Accounts (ISAs) are tax-efficient savings plans that allow you to shelter up to £20,000 in the 2018/19 tax year free from income and capital gains tax. So, if you’ve always been a saver but you’ve never considered an ISA you could be losing out to the tax man.

Make your savings work hard
You have a number of options when it comes to your ISA investment:

• Invest up to £20,000 in a stocks and shares ISA
• Invest up to £20,000 in a cash ISA
• Split the £20,000 between the two

Whichever route you choose, it’s important to take advantage of your ISA allowance every tax year. That way you can shelter more of your savings from tax and make your savings work for you.

Benefits of the ISAs
With a cash ISA, no matter the current interest rate, your savings will be free from income tax and will not count towards your Personal Savings Allowance. Therefore, you can save with a cash ISA and earn up to £1,000 income from any other savings (£500 if you are a higher-rate taxpayer), before having to pay tax.

Furthermore, by taking a stocks and shares ISA, you will not have to pay any Capital Gains Tax (CGT), which is a good option if you are likely to exceed your £11,700 annual CGT allowance.

Important points to consider
The tax efficiency of ISAs is based on current rules. The current tax situation may not be maintained. The benefit of the tax treatment depends on individual circumstances.

Although there is no fixed term, you should consider stocks and shares ISAs to be a medium to long term investment of ideally five years or more.

The value of your investments and any income from them may fall as well as rise and is not guaranteed. You may get back less than you invest.